Knights dethrone Kingsmen

May 06, 2007|MARK BRADFORD Tribune Staff Writer

SOUTH BEND -- The more things changed, the more they stayed the same Saturday afternoon at the South Bend Country Club High School Boys Golf Invitational. The big change was in the team winner. A strong showing by Marian's No. 3 and No. 4 players, Brian Demeter and Stephen Sexton, allowed the Knights to knock off defending champion Penn 312-330. There was a battle for third, with LaPorte (354) nudging out St. Joe and Adams, both of which scored 355. Another change was in the medalist, where Adam Sumrall scored a 77 to tie Penn's Steve Spiritoso after 18 holes and force a playoff. Sumrall put a quick end to that, blasting a perfect drive to the center of the fairway on the first hole while Spiritoso sent his equally long drive far to the right behind some large trees. Spiritoso recovered extremely well, however, lining a low shot that carried all the way to the fringe of the 309-yard Hole No. 1. However, Sumrall's second shot, a high arching ball from about 125 yards, hit the front of the green and crawled to within a foot of the cup. When Spiritoso's pitch kicked to the right on its way to the cup, Sumrall had his second medalist honor in two weeks. The Knight's sophomore star also won at Morris Park last week. In fact, in the four tournaments Marian has competed in this season, Colin Van Es has won two medals, as has Sumrall. "That was the only birdie I made all day," Sumrall said of his playoff hole. "I played the same hole the exact same way earlier but ended with a four.''